Just Nasty! NYPD officer arrested for public masturbation

Detective Robert Francis, 46, was charged with four counts of public lewdness, a misdemeanor, stemming from a quartet of creepy incidents in Rockville Centre, L.I. — but the sicko indicated to police he’d peered at even more women, Rockville Centre Police Commissioner Charles Gennario said.

He was also charged with three counts of endangering the welfare of a minor since three of the victims were under 16 and one 17, as well as trespassing.Francis’s motive remain unclear — thought court papers indicate he’s recently faced serious money trouble.

“He kept telling investigative detectives that he was going through tough times. To really tell you the truth, at this point I spoke to my detective just before we came in here and he was concerned that he may harm himself,” Gennario said.

In April 2016, a Queens judge ordered Francis to pay $40,209 for unpaid rent at his Springfield Gardens, Queens home. Last September, he declared bankruptcy, claiming he had $624,000 in assets, but $727,000 in liabilities.

Gennario said Francis’s arrest was the result of an investigation that began Feb. 5 with a report of a Peeping Tom shining a flashlight into a woman’s window, then fondling himself.

Two similar incidents soon followed.

“Same M.O. Male exposing himself, getting the attention of a female resident. When she looked, he would start masturbating. When she would go to get help, he would run away,” Gennario said.

On Friday — after several weeks without a report of a Peeping Tom — the perv struck again, Gennario said.

On Saturday, police received a report of a suspicious person in a driveway and arrested Francis before he acted, Gennario said.

The detective with 17 years on the force was carrying a flashlight and fit descriptions of the suspect, police said.

Among Francis’s victims were young girls in high school who were “very fearful,” Gennario said. He added that Francis appeared to have chosen victims at random.

Francis is assigned to the 71st Precinct stationhouse in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. He has a wife and daughter and earns $9,832 per month, according to bankruptcy filings.

A young man who answered the door at Francis’s home declined to comment.

“He’s not here so you can get the f–k out!” he said.

The NYPD has suspended Francis and taken his firearm.

Court papers show that two men, Curtis Brathwaite and Raushaun Fogle, filed separate suits against Francis stemming from an encounter in a a Crown Heights building on Jan. 3, 2009.

Both accused Francis of false arrest. The city settled the cases for a total of $40,000 — $500 of which Francis paid out of his own pocket.